Data: Census Bureau; Chart: Axios Visuals
Manhattan's population grew last year, reversing two years of decline and countering a lot of doomsday and schadenfreude-laced declarations about the city's demise.
Why it matters: The COVID-era population drops in big cities in 2020 and 2021 appear to be slowing and even reversing in some major metropolitan areas, according to Census data out Thursday.
By the numbers: New York County — that's Manhattan — saw a net population increase of 17,472 people in 2022 — up 1.1% from the year before.
- A lot of the growth was from births and international migration, Bloomberg noted.
- But net migration to Manhattan from inside the U.S. was also up — 2,908 people in 2022, compared to a loss of 98,566 in 2021.
- Other major counties in big metro areas saw growth, too. Fulton County in Georgia (home to Atlanta) was up 1.1% and Maricopa County in Arizona (that's Phoenix) saw similar increases.
Zoom in: Even though remote work has emptied the office buildings in Manhattan, the apartment buildings are full.
- "Residential is booming," said Jonathan Miller CEO of Miller Samuel, a real estate appraisal firm in Manhattan. Wealthier people still want to live in the city — and some are even using it as a base to work remotely, he said.
